


Expingere

by WolfAndHound_Archivist



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Friendship, Marauders' Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-04
Updated: 2016-02-04
Packaged: 2018-05-18 05:01:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5899216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfAndHound_Archivist/pseuds/WolfAndHound_Archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Christmas fic for Kayla</p>
            </blockquote>





	Expingere

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Lassenia, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Wolf and Hound](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Wolf_and_Hound), which was created to make stories posted to the Sirius_Black_and_Remus_Lupin Yahoo! mailing list easier to find. However, even though I still love the fandom, I am no longer active in it and do not have the time to maintain it. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in December 2015. I posted an announcement with Open Doors, but we may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on the [Wolf and Hound collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/wolfandhound/profile).

Severus avoided the red eyes while sinking into a deep bow. He had too many secrets to risk prolonged eye contact. "You have need of me, my Lord?"

"You were directed to complete the potion by now, Snape. I trust you have followed your instructions?" The voice was cold, and allowed no room for defiance.

"I have brought you both the potions you requested, my Lord," Severus replied, choosing his words carefully. He performed a calming exercise and tried to ignore his fear. "Which one do you desire now?"

"The Veritaserum Expingere tonight. The Veritaserum Caducum will not be needed until we have captured the Potter boy. Once we have him, he will reveal his secrets, and then he will die."

Drawing a vial out of his robes, Severus tried to squelch mental images of Harry soaring on a broomstick, laughing with his friends, struggling to complete a potion. Harry, young, bold and vibrant, even through his tragedy. Though the child of an enemy, Harry was a child nonetheless. He deserved torture and death no more than he deserved a great and horrible destiny. Severus would fulfill the role he had been assigned by Dumbledore; he would lie to the Dark Lord, cheating He Who Must Not Be Named, protecting Harry at any cost. His role as a spy was only his second priority.

He handed the container to the Dark Lord, still looking at the ground. "The potion, m'Lord." Although Voldemort's fingers did not touch Severus's hand as he took the vial, Severus felt a chill run through his body.

"Arise, my servant," the chill voice ordered. "You will apply the potion while I watch. If it performs properly, you will be rewarded." The tone of his voice made it clear what would happen if the potion did not work. 

Severus stood and looked Voldemort in the eyes for the first time that night. "I prepared these potions with the utmost care, Lord. They will accomplish exactly what they are meant to do."

Voldemort studied Severus for a long moment, his slit-like eyes closing almost completely as he considered the man before him. He held the vial in one hand, tracing the stopper with the slender fingers of the other. Finally, he seemed satisfied. "Follow me."

Trying not to breathe a sigh of relief, Severus followed the Dark Lord deeper into the darkness. Although Voldemort was an accomplished Legilimens, Severus had been completely honest about the potency of the potion. Veritaserum expingere was a varition of Veritaserum; it is applied like paint, and forces portraits to show the absolute truth. Their paint rearranges itself to display the answer to the question, though it cannot produce sound.

The portrait of the Fat Lady had been stolen from Hogwarts several weeks ago. It seemed a trivial matter, likely a prank resulting from the Weasley twin's contraptions, until Severus received an order from the Dark Lord, requiring the potion. Dumbledore concluded that Voldemort was planning on using the Fat Lady to find information on Harry's security at school, and instructed Severus to alter the potion.

Voldemort stopped at a rough stone wall, adorned only by the Fat Lady. Her frame was nowhere in sight. The canvas hard been torn in several places, and someone had retouched the paint on her dress; she was now naked, and glared accusingly at Severus as he applied the potion. When he finished, the entire canvas shone wetly, and there was a dull look in her eyes.

"It is ready, my Lord," said Severus, backing away to allow Voldemort closer access to the portrait.

"Very good," said the Dark Lord, moving close to the Fat Lady. "Portrait. What is your purpose?"

"I guard Gryffindor Tower at Hogwarts School," she replied promptly. The paint reconfigured itself, showing Hogwarts and then the Gryffindor common room. A dark haired boy sat by himself, staring gloomily into the fire, while other students played cards or chess across the room.

"What is the current password?"

"Elessar." A school hallway appeared; the Fat Lady hung on the wall. A girl with bright red hair approached, said something, and the portrait swung open.

"Does the Potter boy live in your tower?" Voldemort rubbed his fingers lovingly over the canvas. The paint sizzled where he touched it.

"Yes." A thousand images flashed at once, all of a scrawny boy with unruly black hair. The boy with a dazed look on his face, obviously his first day as a first year. The boy, laden with books. The boy, with a broomstick over one shoulder and a thick cloak over the other, walking with his Quidditch team. The boy, laughing with a girl, her red hair catching the light. The boy, chasing another boy down the hall. The boy, with an owl. The boy, in every stage of schooling, in every way the Fat Lady had ever seen him. Messy hair seemed to cover the entire canvas.

"Enough." The Fat Lady reappeared on the canvas, still looking dull. "Show me the last time you saw Potter."

Four boys came through the portrait hole; the one with the black hair and a rather plump boy were dressed warmly and carried trunks, but the other two boys did not. The boy with the messy hair and one of the boys without luggage, the same boy who had been staring into the fire, where in the middle of a screaming row. Both were red in the face, and one made a rude hand gesture. At this, the plump boy grabbed the messy haired boy, and the fourth boy grabbed the dark boy. The two with the luggage left, and the other boys were left in the hallway. The fourth boy, who had brown hair and threadbare robes, was still holding the dark boy tightly. The dark one turned in his grip and said something quietly; his mouth hardly moved. The brunette's mouth fell open, likely in shock, and the darker boy buried his head in his companion's neck, clutching him tightly. After a moment, the brown-headed boy said something, his hands moving over the other boy's back. The dark boy pulled back for a second, looking into the other's face, and then kissed him desperately. The brunette spun them around, pushing the other boy hard against the wall. His hands fisted in the black hair as they kissed, eventually straying to tug the other's shirt from his trousers. The dark haired boy seemed helpless. He held the brown head in both his hands, clutching it as they kissed, and then as it began to venture lower down his body. The brunette bit his shoulder, then his collarbone, before beginning to lick his lower abdomen. The darker boy leaned his head back against the wall; his eyes were shut tight, and his mouth open as he obviously moaned loudly. The brown-haired boy pulled at the zip of the trousers impatiently, finally revealing the other's erection. The lighter boy's eyes lit up at the sight. He lapped at the head gently for a moment, then grabbed the other's arse and pulled him all the way into his mouth. He stayed still for a moment, his nose pressed against the dark boy's groin, until the other opened his eyes and looked down at him. The black headed boy released the tight grip he had on the other's hair, and ran his fingers through it instead. They shared a long look, and the darker boy said something before giving a shaky smile and beginning to thrust into the other's mouth. The brunette opened his mouth slightly, allowing his mouth to be fucked for while, but eventually held the other boy's hips still. He moved his mouth over the cock, swirling his tongue along the head, and sucking hard on the shaft, until the dark headed boy thrust forward violently, threw his head back, and gave a silent scream.

They stayed like that for a moment even after the brunette finished swallowing. He kept his mouth on the dark boy's cock, gently licking him clean. The black haired boy began carding through the other's hair, then impatiently pulled him up for a deep, slow kiss. When they pulled apart, the darker one touched his companion's crotch and asked something, but the brunette shook his head. The black haired boy cocked his head and obviously asked a question, but the other boy laughed it away. He zipped the dark boy's trousers while he spoke, occasionally reaching up to brush a tear from the other's face. When he was through, they kissed again, softly, before turning and going back through the portrait hole. Barely ten seconds later, the boy with the messy black hair came running into view, picked a glove up off the ground, and ran off again. 

The portrait slowly returned to it's battered state, showing only the Fat Lady, looking as rebellious and defiant as could be managed when naked and drugged.

Severus tried to ignore the sounds of his Lord relieving his need. After a long, noisy, uncomfortable time, Voldemort spoke again, sounding much more cheerful than an evil overlord had any right to be.

"So, Harry Potter has two gay friends. Severus, is there any way we can use - " He trailed off as the canvas began to change again.

It still showed a boy with messy, black hair, but the pictures where in more detail. The boy, carrying records. The boy, changing into a stag when the hallway was deserted. The boy, wearing bellbottoms. The boy's face, with hazel eyes and a smooth forehead. Severus felt his stomach drop out of his body. He began to see spots. The punishment for this transgression would likely prove painful and deadly.

"There is no Harry Potter in Gryffindor," said the Fat Lady. "I have shown you James Potter, as I saw him on December 20, 1976."

~~~~

The last thing Severus remembers before the pain was the portrait of a woman, fat and naked, but proud and somehow lovely, burning slowly.

He had changed the potion, as Dumbledore instructed. He wiped the Fat Lady's memories of the past two decades. She would remember many Potter boys as they grew into men, but not a single one named Harry. The real Harry would live for a while longer, and would grow, and ultimately would either kill, or be killed.

As her canvas burned, she refused to scream.


End file.
